Tesla takes over battery innovators Maxwell

For an investment price of 200 million dollars, Tesla aims to take over the California-based battery manufacturer Maxwell Technologies. The purchase still is subject to official government approval but is expected to be completed in the second quarter of 2019.

Maxwell Technologies is mainly known for their development and production capacities of ultracapacitors, and has recently also been cited in connection with dry electrode technology for batteries.

Maxwell’s CEO Dr Franz Fink, seemed happy about their new corporate mother company: “We believe this transaction is in the best interests of Maxwell stockholders and offers investors the opportunity to participate in Tesla’s mission of accelerating the advent of sustainable transport and energy.”

Tesla confirmed the agreement, stating that: “We are always looking for potential acquisitions that make sense for the business and support Tesla’s mission to accelerate the world’s transition to sustainable energy.” And while Maxwell’s ultracaps technology is sure to benefit Tesla, rumours are that Tesla may be far more interested in Maxwell’s dry electrode technology, which the company claims enables an energy density of over 300 Wh/kg in current demonstration cells and they see a path to over 500 Wh/kg. Moreover, Maxwell also says their cells are much easier to manufacture, something Tesla has been looking to improve significantly latest since their last filing.

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